Feature Friday- More Chrysanthemum Mirrors
Chrysanthemum Mirrors are all the rage in Pinterest right now. My sister, sister-in-law, and my Mom and I decided to get together once a month to create a project. I got to choose the project this time and chose the Chrysanthemum Mirror by Kristi at Addicted2Decorating.
This project is a simple one and took us about 2 hours to complete. Perfect for an afternoon of crafty adventure!
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For each flower mirror we used:
4 packages of 48 dollar store spoons (the cheaper the better)
One piece of heavy cardboard cut in a 16″ diameter circle
One 5″ diameter round mirror (Dollar Store)
Lots of hot glue sticks and a hot glue gun
Spray primer
Acrylic paint
We began by separating the handles from the spoons. In Kristi’s tutorial, she uses scissors to do this. We decided rather quickly that Kristi has a lot more patience than we do. It wasn’t long before we were just snapping the spoons where the handle meets the base of the spoon.
In this photo, Mom is hot gluing her round mirror into the center of her piece of cardboard.
Starting from the outside and working towards the mirrored center, we glued the spoons down, overlapping them in rows. When beginning the very first row on the outside, be sure to leave about the space of a spoon between each one to accommodate for the overlapping. We worked all the way to the edge of the mirror.
Once the mirrors were all assembled, we took them outside, covered the center mirror with paper and sprayed a light coating of primer on them. The primer took about ten minutes to dry and they were then ready for the next step.
The next step is to choose a color and begin in the center with the undiluted color. We painted the first two rows in our chosen color and then gradually began adding white for each row after that.
Mom just can’t decide on her color!
But it wasn’t long before we all came up with a color and painted away. My sister had the brilliant idea to add buttons to the center along the edge of the mirror. They are not only a great addition, but they cover up the rough edges of our spoons where they meet the mirror. We were all very happy with the finished project.
And my sister’s dog, Biscuit, would like to know why that other dog is looking at her.
Seriously.
Enjoyed this tutorial? Be sure to check out my tutorial page for many more!
Hi Carol!
I started out using garden clippers, but it soon became clear that it was much easier to just snap the spoons with my fingers. For the most part, it was a clean snap. The snapped end is covered by the spoon over top. Hope that helps.
suzy
How did you break the spoons cleanly without destroying them?
the family dollar store has plastic spoons 48 for1.00 o.k. fred has them 100 for 1.00. I got some yesterday. Thought I would let ya”ll know. ya”ll have a nice day & GOD BLESS us all.
When I look at the spoon handles I see them making another flower mirror, perhaps a daisy. If I try is I’ll send you the pic.
Love this! I teach 2nd grade and this could possibly be a craft we could do! I blog as well and would love to link. http://www.doreensrockin3rdgrade.com
What kind of stand did you use?
Wouldn’t it have been easier to buy colored spoons or painted them before you glued them onto the circle? It is beautiful. I want to make one to put on my front door.
The sharp ends are placed towards the center, underneath the spoon above. So, no sharp ends in view!
They might be a little sharp on the ends though?
Wouldn’t they be too sharp on the ends?
You are very welcome, Nanci! Would love to see what you come up with!
suzy
could also poke a hole in the cardboard and weave some pretty ribbon thru it!
oh yes. we’ll be making this one as well. My friends and I are planning a bridal shower. We are going to use this as a centerpiece (using her wedding colors) and then it will be a gift she can use in their new home! Thanks for the wonderful tutorial (once again)!!
LOVE the idea of the cake boards!! and they are even at Dollar Tree!!!
Here’s a thought, use Wilton 16 inch round cardboard cake boards instead of cutting out the cardboard which can sometimes be difficult, and also creates some rough edges.
Thanks Judi! Yes, there are lots of possibilities for this project!
I’ve seen a similar project that instead of the mirror they showed several options such as silk flowers, colored feathers, circles of beads (this looked gorgeous). I’ve also seen these made on a smaller scale for outdoor decor using a plastic base instead of cardboard then put on trees, fencing, and/or painted dowel rods and stuck in the ground at various points. I love this project so many ways to make it fit your style. Hope this helps, I know it’s a few months past your comment. Have a safe peaceful day!
Thank you! If you decide to make it, would love to see your finished project!
Hi Robin!
Plastic knives! Check out this tutorial! http://delicateconstruction.com/2012/08/beacause-my-plastic-knives-felt-left-out.html Not my idea, but is an awesome tutorial for those forgotten plastic knives!
I’m definitely making these! I love the dark color in the middle with the lighter colors on the outside! So pretty!
haha, sounds like me. Everything has at least 2 lives. Any suggestions on what can be made outta plastic knives??
Robyn
Hi Kathy!
I’d love to feature your finished project! Let me know how it turns out. Sounds wonderful.
this is such a cool idea;I am going to make one and paint it silver so it will fit into a modern décor theme. thanks for the neat idea.
Thank you!
You could add a photo to the middle, creating one big flower frame, or add a circle of pretty scrapbooking paper.
Hi, this is a wonderful tutorial, I absolutely love it!! I was just wondering if anyone could think of something else to put in the middle instead of a mirror?
Couldn’t you paint the cardboard first and use colored spoons? Then you wouldn’t have to paint at all.
Could you paint the cardboard first and simply use different colored spoons? Then, you wouldn’t have to paint at all.
Theses are awesome. What a great idea cheers to you
Hi Lisa!
I have a tendency to use Rustoleum brand primer that I purchase at Home Depot. One $5.00 spray can lasts through many projects. In this particular project, just a very light spray coating is needed. It will be dry within ten minutes and ready for you to paint!
suzy
I am at the primer stage. What kind of primer no i need to buy and where is the best place to buy it without paying an arm and a leg?
Hi Lisa,
I had that problem with mine. My sister bought a thicker spoon that snapped well. It may depend on the brand. However, I discovered recently another way you might like to try. If you hold it about 2 inches above a candle flame for a few moments, you can easily bend the spoon at that point and cut it cleanly with scissors. Do it outside, though. The melted plastic smell can get strong.
Hope that helps!
suzy
i went out tody and bought all the supplies you suggested. i just started to cut the spoons, but, not cutting right, its all jagged, so i tried your suggestion to do it by hand, still jagged edge. any suggestions?
I absolutely love this! I was wondering how you were planning to hang it up though?
The spoon handles would make great handles for DIY popsicles.
Hi Heather,
A bigger mirror would work fine. You would need more spoons, though. We used acrylic paint, Apple Barrel brand to paint the spoons. Be sure to spray them lightly first with a bit of primer. We painted the backs of the first few rows. The rest did not need it.
Hope that helps!
suzy
Hi,
Beautiful and conservative project.Just wondering if this could be designed using a bigger mirror? Also, what type of paint was used to paint the spoons and did you paint the backs? Thanks.
I visit “The Money Saving Mom” site and saw your lovely Chrysanthemum Flower Mirrors….what a Talent you are….I just love them! Looking forward to seeing all your other tutorials. Have a wonderful Bless day!
Did you paint the back of the spoons? If so, was it difficult to paint the backs after they were glued down? Love this idea. Also love the monthly craft social. Maybe I can get the girls in my family to start one!
Here is a thought for the spoon handles.. paint them, and use them to surround a clock, like a sunburst.. ?
These are cute! My girls and I would have fun making these. What type of paint did you use to paint the spoons?
Looks awesome, I wish I could convince my family to craft with me. They think I’m crazy. I was checking out pinterest to see if anyone else had posted their version of this. I did one, and I too skipped the wreath form, although I used a foam poster board. Cardboard’s probably better, the foam poster board was hard to cut in a circle. And I ended up cutting my inner circle too big for any mirror that I had, so I just used it as a frame for some word art I whipped together. Yours looks great!
You are an inspiration! Thanks to you we decided to
have a family craft day monthly and this was our first project, what fun. My only suggestion is painting the cardboard first, or at least the first couple of inches from the mirror
You are an inspiration! Thanks to you we decided to
have a family craft day monthly and this was our first project, what fun. My only suggestion is painting the cardboard first, or at least the first cople of nches from te mirror
OMG! These are awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I think I am TOTALLY going to make one of these. LOVE IT!!!!
Heading to the store tonight to pick up the stuff to make one these are toooooo CUTE!!!
I used 3M Command strips as they don’t damage the wall, but hold the mirror up quite well. The mirrors are very light, and the command strips are actually able to hold up much more weight. If we had thought ahead of the game, we probably would have added a wire hanger of some sort to the back before we started.
suzy
These are beautiful, have you mounted them to the wall yet? If so how would you suggest mounting? Thanks!
Hi Shirley,
The green totes belong to my sister. She got them from the dollar store just recently. It took about three hours total to do the project. We really had fun with it. Next month we meet again, and my sister will be picking something from Pinterest.
suzy
Thanks, Heidi! We did this project at my sister’s house. She has a great porch off the house that is perfect for crafting.
suzy
Hi Carol!
Thanks so much for stopping by! Yes, this project was incredibly fun to put together and really didn’t take a ton of time to do! I’m putting it up in my newly decorated craft room.
suzy
Hi Deb,
The primer I used was just regular primer for metals or plastics. I keep a spray bottle of it in my supplies and use it for many many projects. We just put a very light coating so that the paint would stick to the spoons, and it dried within minutes.
suzy
These are so pretty…love them!
Suzy,
Wow! You guys did a wonderful job. I just love the way they turned out. Thank you for the tutorial.
AWESOME! AWESOME! AWESOME! Wow….I love these.
These are so pretty. Where did you get those green totes? How long did it take to finish? Look at me the question box. Thanks for the post.
wow there gorgeous, sooo creative, love the idea with the spoons!!!!!
I just LOVE this. I’m sure it’s so fun to make so I definately will give this project a try soon, with my daughters. Where were you? It looks like you’re in the woods? Amazing place!
Thanks for sharing 🙂
Funny you should ask that. I never throw anything away. They are in a ziplock bag waiting for a brain storm. Ha!
They look great! My only question is: What the heck are you going to do with all the left over spoon handles? Hmmmmm?
These are so cool. I love that you all get together and craft every month. What fun!
Spoons? Seriously? These are gorgeous!
(And my dog has the same issue. Confound you, Doppelganger Dog!)
Suzy another wonderful tutorial. You are my ‘Go to’ tutorial person for sure! This sounds like a wonderful project! I was surprised you started at the outside edge and worked in . My natural inclination would be the opposite…..what kind of primer did you use? Some special for plastic or just any regular spray on primer??? Just love it woman! Hugs! deb
Oh my gosh how ab fab are these! And I love that pic of your sister’s dog looking at the mirror. That is just precious!
Your mirrors turned out great! What I like even better is the idea of getting together with other craftys to tackle pinterest projects…sounds like such a fun day~
Great job and a terrific tutorial!